Is Ed Markey ready to rumble?

1/11/13 6:36 PM EST

The Democratic nominee will have the advantage in the upcoming Massachusetts Senate special election, but after the Martha Coakley experience in 2010, there’s a lingering sense of anxiety among some Democrats.

Pointing to a lack of web presence and a National Journal report that Rep. Ed Markey, the early frontrunner, is being advised by a “well-seasoned” team that includes veterans of the Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale campaigns, David Kravitz of the progressive Blue Mass Group blog asks, “Should I be worried yet?”

I like Ed Markey, as I’ve said before…But he hasn’t had to run in a seriously contested election for many, many years, and that lineup of advisers suggests to me that he may not be entirely in tune with what has worked well in Massachusetts recently (or, worse, that he may not be up to it or interested in doing it)…

Don’t get me wrong, I think Markey could win. But he’s got a lot of work to do before he gets there, and he needs the right philosophy and the right team in place to do it. So far, I can’t say I’m impressed.

Markey isn't guaranteed the nomination -- he could still get opposition in the primary. But whether he's challenged or not, he's going to need a refresher course in modern campaigning.

He hasn’t had a tough election since winning a 12-candidate primary in 1976. Since then, he’s had seven campaigns with no GOP opponent at all. When Markey does get competition in his solidly Democratic district, he typically skates to victory with more than 70 percent of the vote.

Scott Brown’s recent slap about Markey’s residence – the ex-GOP senator jabbed that he had never seen the 66-year-old congressman on the Washington to Boston flight and questioned where the congressman actually lived – was also an insinuation that Markey is no longer accustomed to retail politics and life on the rubber chicken circuit.

Is potential political rustiness cause for concern? Probably not, but it’s too early to say. It’s certainly an issue Markey’s prospective opponents will be thinking of as they weigh running against him in the special.